Merricks Yacht Club

About Merricks Yacht Club

Some clubs announce themselves with a marina full of masts; Merricks Yacht Club announces itself with a tractor on a sandy beach. Tucked at the end of Merricks Beach Road on the eastern shore of Western Port, facing across the water toward Phillip Island, this is a small club centred on off-the-beach dinghy and catamaran sailing in a holiday township — the kind of place where sailing, fishing and socialising share the same stretch of foreshore and the same cast of characters.

The sailing itself is described by locals as friendly but competitive, and the club has produced its share of capable, successful sailors across the decades — a return out of all proportion to its modest scale. Racing runs on Saturdays from November through April, and the current class list is remarkably broad for a club this size: Melges 14s, Lasers, 470s, Sabres, Impulses, Pacers, Optimists, A-Class catamarans, Mosquitoes, Castle 650s and Explorer 16s all appear on the water. The club is also the holder of the Westernport Challenge trophies for off-the-beach yachts — silverware it notes, with evident relish, it has won "again."

What rounds out the picture is the social fabric. Social members are welcome, the club serves as a gathering point for residents and holiday makers alike, and Thursday-evening drinks at 5:30 have become an institution — the recommended first port of call for any newcomer, along with Saturday race days. Membership applications go before the committee, normally endorsed by two existing members, so Thursday drinks is genuinely how the front door works. In an era of large professionally run clubs, Merricks remains the older model: a beach, a yard, a bar table and a fleet.

Services

• Sailing club

Service area

Merricks Beach, VIC